Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone. Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling. It is the first novel in the Harry Potter series and Rowlings debut novel, first published in 1. Bloomsbury. It was published in the United States as Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by Scholastic Corporation in 1. The plot follows Harry Potter, a young wizard who discovers his magical heritage as he makes close friends and a few enemies in his first year at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. With the help of his friends, Harry faces an attempted comeback by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who killed Harrys parents, but failed to kill Harry when he was just 1. The novel won most of the British book awards that were judged by children and other awards in the US. The book reached the top of the New York Times list of best selling fiction in August 1. It has been translated into at least seventy three other languages and has been made into a feature length film of the same name, as have all six of its sequels. Most reviews were very favourable, commenting on Rowlings imagination, humour, simple, direct style and clever plot construction, although a few complained that the final chapters seemed rushed. The writing has been compared to that of Jane Austen, one of Rowlings favourite authors, Roald Dahl, whose works dominated childrens stories before the appearance of Harry Potter, and the Ancient Greek story teller Homer. While some commentators thought the book looked backwards to Victorian and Edwardian boarding school stories, others thought it placed the genre firmly in the modern world by featuring contemporary ethical and social issues. Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, along with the rest of the Harry Potter series, has been attacked by several religious groups and banned in some countries because of accusations that the novels promote witchcraft, but other religious commentators have written that the book exemplifies important viewpoints, including the power of self sacrifice and the ways in which peoples decisions shape their personalities. The series has been used as a source of object lessons in educational techniques, sociological analysis and marketing. SynopsiseditEleven year old Harry Potter has been living an ordinary life, constantly abused by his surly and cold uncle and aunt, Vernon and Petunia Dursley and bullied by their spoiled son Dudley. His life changes on the day of his eleventh birthday when he receives a letter of acceptance into a Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, delivered by a half giant named Rubeus Hagrid after previous letters had been destroyed by Vernon and Petunia. Hagrid explains Harrys hidden past as the wizard son of James and Lily Potter, who are a wizard and witch respectively, and how they were murdered by the most evil and powerful dark wizard in history, Lord Voldemort, which resulted in the one year old Harry being sent to live with his aunt and uncle. The strangest bit of the murder was how Voldemort was unable to kill him, but instead had his powers removed and blasted away, sparking Harrys immense fame among the magical community. Hagrid introduces Harry to the wizarding world, bringing him to places filled with wonder and magic like Diagon Alley, a hidden London street where Harry purchases his pet owl Hedwig and his various school supplies, and Gringotts Wizarding Bank, where he uncovers a fortune left to him by his parents in his vault. There, he is surprised to discover how famous he truly is among witches and wizards, who refer to him as the boy who lived. A month later, Harry leaves the Dursleys home to catch the Hogwarts Express from Kings Cross railway stations secret Hogwarts platform, Platform 9. Sap Gui For Linux. On the train, he befriends fellow first year Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, whose snobbiness and affinity for spells initially causes the two boys to dislike her. There, Harry also makes an enemy of yet another first year, Draco Malfoy, who prejudices against Hermione due to her being the daughter of Muggles, a term used by wizards and witches that describe ordinary humans with no magical ability. Arriving at Hogwarts, the first years are assigned by the magical Sorting Hat to houses that best suit their personalities, the four Houses being Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone First Edition' title='Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone First Edition' />Harry hears from Ron about Slytherins dark reputation which is known to house potential dark witches and wizards, and thus objects to being sorted into Slytherin despite the Hat claiming that Harry has potential to develop under that House. He winds up in Gryffindor instead with Ron and Hermione while Draco is sorted into Slytherin, like his whole family before him. As classes begin at Hogwarts, Harry discovers his innate talent for flying on broomsticks despite no prior experience, and is recruited into his Houses Quidditch a competitive wizards sport played in the air team as a Seeker, which is said to be the most difficult role. He also comes to dislike the schools Potions master, Severus Snape, who is also the Head of Slytherin House that acts biased to members of his House while perpetually looking for opportunities to fail Harry and his friends. The peaceful school year is interrupted by the entrance of a troll into the school, which causes school wide panic and the discovery of a huge three headed dog standing guard over a trapdoor in a forbidden corridor. Coupled with Snapes recent leg injury as well as behaviour, the recent events prompt Harry, Hermione and Ron to suspect him to be looking for a way to enter the trapdoor. Hermione forbids the boys from investigating for fear for expulsion, and instead makes Harry direct his attention to his first ever Quidditch game, where his broomstick begins to lose control and threatens to throw him off. This leads Hermione to suspect that Snape is jinxing Harrys broom due to his strange behaviour during the match. After the excitement of winning despite the odds has died down, Christmas approaches and Harry receives an invisibility cloak from an anonymous source claiming that the cloak belonged to Harrys father. Using the cloak to explore the school at night to investigate the possibility of what is under the trapdoor, he discovers the Mirror of Erised, in which the viewer sees his or her deepest desires come true. A visit to Hagrids cottage at the foot of the school leads the trio to find a newspaper report stating the attempted robbery of a Gringotts vaulta vault that Hagrid had gone to take something while showing Harry around. A further indiscretion from Hagrid allows them to work out that the object kept under that trapdoor is a Philosophers Stone, which grants its user immortality as long as it is constantly used, as well as the ability to turn any metal into pure gold. Harry is also informed by a centaur named Firenze in the forest that a plot to steal the Stone is being orchestrated by none other than Voldemort himself, who schemes to use it to be restored back to his body and return to power. When the schools headmaster Albus Dumbledore is lured from Hogwarts under false pretences, Harry, Hermione and Ron fear that the theft is imminent and descend through the trapdoor themselves. They encounter a series of obstacles, each of which requires unique skills possessed by one of the three, and one of which requires Ron to sacrifice himself in a life sized game of wizards chess. This special edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone has a gorgeous new cover illustration by Kazu Kibuishi. Inside is the full text of the original novel. Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone movie YIFY subtitles. Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone is the first novel in the Harry Potter series. The book. First editions of Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone may be worth thousands thanks to a typo in 500 hardback copies of the novel. Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone First Edition' title='Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone First Edition' />Daniel Radcliffe says he will never close door on playing Harry Potter again. The Steadfast Tin Soldier.